Pages

Tuesday, April 11, 2017

I think this might be the first year that we have decorated Easter Eggs before (without friends and it was at their house). Little H went over to a friend's house and they were decorating easter eggs at their house and Little H didn't have a chance to decorate an egg so I decided that when we got home we would decorate eggs. Thankfully a friend had given us a supply of Easter Egg decorating supplies so we had some fun decorating our eggs. Little N and Little M were able to decorate their eggs first because they got all their chores and ate all their food. This hurt Little H's feelings because she still hadn't finished eating her food and it was taking her a long time to finish her food because it wasn't a meal that was her favorite anymore. 😫 John had made the decision that the boys could do the project and if Little H finished her food in enough time she could do it before bed if not she would have to do it tomorrow.

Little M with his eggs and he is also wearing his myobrace.

Little N with his eggs and you would think he was mad I was taking a picture but that was the smile he gave me. He also had just taken out his myobrace.

The kids all had fun and Little H finally finished her food so she could join in the fun. John took more pictures of the boys doing the steps and then I was able to take a picture of Little H coloring the egg because I was done helping the boys. We had fun.

She still had a mouth full of stir fried peas in her mouth as she was decorating her eggs.

While she was at her friend's house they had colored on their faces. Hence the silly crazy face.

Sunday, April 9, 2017

This time of Easter is probably one of my favorites but then also probably one of the hardest things about the Christian faith. I love Palm Sunday because it's the celebration of Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem. Our second pastor asked the question during the service of how many people would want to be the colt that Jesus rode on as he made his way into Jerusalem. As he asked that question I felt uncomfortable and my first response was NO! I do not want to be the colt that Jesus rode on for a variety of different reasons. But the biggest reason is how unworthy am I a sinner to have Jesus ride my on back. I don't deserve to be near him to even touch the cloak of his clothing. Jesus did a wonderful beautiful thing coming up this week....with Good Friday coming up and then Easter Sunday. I am SO thankful that God sent his son down to earth to live the perfect life so that I could have fellowship with and a relationship with both God the Father and Jesus the Son. So while I still at times don't feel I am worthy to be the colt that Jesus rode on, oh what a beautiful and special memory to have Jesus on my back as everyone in Jerusalem is shouting Hosanna and throwing down their cloaks and palm branches on the day we celebrate Palm Sunday!

Happy PALM Sunday! We had all the kids march around the sanctuary waving palm branches and praising God just to be reminded of what Jesus did on that first palm Sunday (yes I realize that it was not most likely on a Sunday that Jesus rode into Jerusalem but I mean the aspect of the actual day of Palm Sunday that we all celebrate), so many years ago.

Saturday, April 8, 2017

I love weddings! I think if I could I would love to shoot weddings. It's scary because you have to capture the wedding so quickly and there are so many special moments that you want to capture. My favorite thing to take a picture of the groom while the bride is walking down the aisle. So I quickly took a picture of David as Janice was walking down the aisle with her mom. They had already seen each other but there still something magical when you realize that your bride is coming down the aisle to you for the rest of your lives.

This wedding was perfectly suited for them. They had laughter, they had special music and then they had lots of beautiful music that worshiped God. Both David and Janice work and help out with the youth in the church. They also share a love of music. So towards the end of the wedding with the Chinese Youth, they sang the song "Oh happy Day!" It was so beautiful and I was thankful that we got to attend.

We were not sure if I was gonna be able to attend or even make it to the reception because I started having contractions that were pretty regular and we thought we might head over to the hospital. But at the reception, the contractions settled down and stopped. (I sat too long) It was fun going to the reception because it the was the first reception in Taiwan we had been to. Janice wore three different dresses. She added a pink ribbon to her wedding dress and it was beautiful, then she changed into a slinky white and black dress which they then had time to dance and have fun. The kids really wanted to join in on the dance but were too shy to go up by themselves. The final dress was a gorgeous blue dress which was Little H's favorite dress. It was a very fun day! Congratulations and best wishes in your marriage David and Janice.

John was asked to give a 2 minutes prayer during the wedding reception.

I started walking around because the contractions were getting uncomfortable and saw how beautiful this moment was! So I quickly grabbed my camera to capture this.

Little N is either going through a growth spurt or he is just not getting enough sleep. Just sitting and being still caused him to get comfortable and he fell fast asleep during the wedding!

David gave her a kiss on the cheek for their first kiss. Everyone in the audience was saying that wasn't enough and so you knew that he was planning to do something. So I tried to anticipate what he was gonna do. Thankfully I was ready and thankfully he turned towards us.

A big SWOOPING kiss for their first kiss. Sadly the photographer wasn't prepared for David's grand moment so they also had to do their traditional kiss. So they had three sweet kisses to start their marriage!

Little H was so excited to pose by the balloon bride and groom!

Quick iPhone picture of us with the bride and groom! The other photographer used flash so that's why it ended up being so whited out!

Selfie with friends! I'm so thankful that because of John's opportunity to go on the Thailand mission trips and then with the Japan mission trip I have met some of the sweetest people from the Chinese youth!

Tuesday, April 4, 2017

I just realized that I am a little bit sad that our vacation is over. I struggle every single day with this feeling. I've enjoyed having the kids home -- because of the end of the pregnancy we did not do school like we have in the past (well we wrote the bible verses down, and then do reading time and some other things) but it's been nice having the kids home, they've been able to play, we've been able to go on walks and explore. Tomorrow starts the schedule all over again for all three kids. I'm thankful that the two little ones have had the opportunity to go to school and are learning Chinese but I don't always like the running around. Little M is basically in Chinese school and getting homework help from 7:50 am to 4 pm. It's not a bad thing but I wish that he had more free time to study in English and to be able to have free time.

Today was Tomb Sweeping -- it's a national holiday where people go to where their ancestors have been buried, clean the tomb - put out fresh flowers, and put out food for them to eat and also worship their ancestors. John went for a scooter and got caught in traffic in a couple of unexpected places because of cars being parked on both sides of the road because there was a graveyard there and people were doing the tomb sweeping.

When John came back for his scooter drive we went over to Qionglin area, where the bridge was torn down from a typhoon almost 3 or 4 years ago and placed in the river. The kids hunted for treasure and I tried to find a comfortable spot to sit and relax in the sun. (Right now NO spot is comfortable!) John enjoyed climbing on the rocks and exploring and then took N on a mini adventure in the rocks. John took him across the water and N got soaked because the water was too deep for him. It was a nice day! Thankful for the time to just relax and recharge.

Monday, April 3, 2017

I feel like we are in a holding pattern. We don't dare go too far away from the doctor or the hospital because of the way I feel. (I feel sore, and at times I've had my heart race more often - which I can't figure out what's going on with it - if it's because of the heat or if it's because they are contractions and I'm not feeling them quite yet but my heart is feeling the pressure.)

Today is Internation Children's day and it's a holiday over here in Taiwan. (Actually, we have a four day weekend because of Children's Day and Tombsweeping.) John went out for breakfast today and then we went for a walk to Big City because a friend is selling Macarons at a booth outside of Big City and I wanted to pick up some! So we walked to Big City. Stopping at playgrounds, then going into Big City and checking out a couple of shops. Grandma Olson has been nice enough to send some puzzles over and we are discovering that the kids really enjoy doing the puzzles. So we checked out a shop that sells puzzles (but it was pretty expensive). Then we went up to Toys R US to check out what they had and get the kids a gift from the baby for when he comes. The toy was one thing that the boys really remembered when Little H was born and have been asking if this baby will give them a present. So we picked up some hot wheel cars for them from their baby brother to give when he's born.

Then we went and got ice cream. (Okay so I've also been craving ice cream for a while and I really like it!) So four out of five us enjoyed ice cream while Little H enjoyed two donuts which she cutely called the circle dough! Which then she was embarrassed when daddy made a big deal about it!

Afterward we went and got our macarons! It was a good day! Happy International Children's Day!

Sunday, April 2, 2017

I'm pretty sure this is the second time that we've headed over to the beach this year. We went in January and it was gorgeous but then life got in the way and we got busy so the beach just stayed where it was and we did our own thing.

We decided after church that we wanted to do a bbq at the beach and we had invited friends to join us. One of our friends was sick but our other friends joined us. It was an EXTREMELY windy day at the beach and chilly. So the cooking our food on the beach was quickly canceled (I did not want to have sand all over our meat and food as it cooked). I have absolutely no idea how Litte N, M & H were wearing their swimsuits and even going in the water. (Okay so the water was warm) It was such a fun day at the beach and I'm glad that we can go with friends.

Jumping pictures in the ocean!

I love everyone's different way to jump! It's just fun to look at! I also really thought it would be fun to jump and then realized that being 38 weeks pregnant would not be a good thing to do and I wouldn't be able to get much air! 😉

38 weeks pregnant! This pregnancy has been a harder pregnancy on my body. I have had heart issues with this pregnancy, more aches and pains. Thankfully I am nearing the end of this pregnancy and this baby can arrive at anytime - also another thing to be thankful for is that in all the test we have had he seems to be healthy and has had no problems. We are doing lots of walking, exercising, playing and then because I am not getting restful sleep at night, I am taking naps during the day. It's amusing to me it's only when I am pregnant that I snore and John has usually been able to tell when I haven't had the best amount of sleep because I have been tossing and turning and I would snore.

Today I wanted to celebrate my pregnancy with pictures. I wanted family pictures with the kids and John before the baby arrived and then I wanted to make sure I got a variety of pictures of me with the baby belly. I feel huge but then I have my friends come up to me and rub my belly to talk to the baby and tell me that their belly looked like this at 6 months. I guess it all in how you carry your babies. Super excited for this baby to come and see who he is as a person!

I think the best part about being pregnant has been watching the kids interact with my belly. Little M is the sweetest with my belly. He will wrap his arms around my belly and just try to hug the baby. Then he will just chit chat with the baby, asking when will the baby come out and how he can't wait to hold the baby and help change diapers. Little N comes up to my belly and gets as close to my belly as possible and starts to talk to the baby. He would also like me to get headphones and a microphone so that way I can put the headphones on my belly and he can talk to the baby. He can't wait to do homeschooling and snuggle with the baby while he does school. Little H can't figure out if she is happy or sad about the baby. She is super excited about being a big sister but she really wishes that she could be a big sister to a little sister. When she found out that this little baby was a boy, she was very disappointed and at times is still very disappointed about the fact that this baby is a boy. But she is super excited about the fact that eventually this baby will share a room with her so that way she's not alone. She has also gotten in the habit of dancing with my belly and hugging my baby belly. They are all excited to meet this new baby and are praying that he comes out sometime this week. Today N came up to me after I woke up from my nap and told me that the boys had prayed while I was sleeping that the baby would come out this week. So we are in preparation mode and just waiting for this little guy to come!

Saturday, April 1, 2017

April Fools day is a day that N is just starting to get into! He did all sorts of mini jokes throughout the day. For me, he placed a baby doll in my arms while I was sleeping so that I would think that I had my baby! For Little H, he made her breakfast of yogurt - except instead of yogurt it was milk & cut up strawberries. I can't remember the other jokes but it was a fun day.

John with the kids!

We did lots of walking today. Doctor told me to walk and so we are walking. We walked to the traditional market to get fruits and vegetables and then we walked to McDonalds to have lunch. After McDonald's we walked back home and got ready to take pictures over at the train park. I wanted to make sure we had one last picture as our family of 5 before this baby is here. So the boys rode their bikes to the train park, Little H took her scooter over and I walked over. We got to the train park and took our pictures and then the kids played. John set up the hammock and I sat in it and sank to the ground, John thought this was hilarious and laughed at me as he pulled me out of the hammock and tried to adjust the hammock so I could sit in it. But I refused to sit in the hammock after that just because it humiliated me and plus I didn't want to break it. After a while Little H and I walked back home and we enjoyed a movie night!

Our memory verse for April 2017 is Psalm 89:1. Which is also the baby's memory verse. Okay so he doesn't have a memory verse, it's more for me to pray this verse over him as we wake up in the middle of the night and as I'm feeding him.

Welcome to our blog! We try to keep this current for family and friends. We moved to Taiwan in February 2011 and are trying to keep in contact with loved ones through this blog. We love comments and will respond back if you have questions or comments!! Thanks for checking us out!!

LinkWithin

Family Bible Verse 2017

Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. - Lamentations 3:22-23

Little N

Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong. Do everything in love. - I Corinthians 16:13-14

Little M

Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity. - I Timothy 4:12

Little H

Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. - I Thessalonians 5:16-18

Baby S

I will sing of the Lord’s great love forever with my mouth I will make your faithfulness known through all generations. - Psalms 89:1